Sink mounting means



July 18, 1961 M. E. CAMP 2,992,436

SINK MOUNTING MEANS Filed Feb. 6, 1959 FIG. 3

FF/G. 2 54 I. "In" INVENTIOR MARVIN E. CAMP ATTORNEY 2,992,436 SINK MOUNTING MEANS Marvin E. Camp, Newnan, Ga., assignor to William L. Bonnell, Newnan, Ga.; Mae Bonnell and J. L. Glover, executors of said William L. Bonnell, deceased Filed Feb. 6, 1959, Ser. No. 791,768 7 Claims. (Cl. 4-187) This invention relates to improvements in sink mounting means, and more particularly to an improved lug assembly for securing a flanged sink within an opening piovided therefor in a counter top, drainboard and the li c.

It is of course well known to mount a sink within a counter top or drainboard opening by means of screwtype clamp or lug assemblies which also fasten in place the sink frame whose top cross-part bridges the opening between the marginal edges of sink frame and counter top and desirably seals to the top surfaces of said parts. However, the prior sink mounting means are open to various objections, principal of which are that they are not capable of being separably fastened to the sink flange and counter top and hence are difficult to install; and, in addition, they usually require not only the use of tools but also that the clamps or lugs be located blindly from underneath the counter top.

Another objection to a known form of lug means was that attachment thereof to the sink flange required inversion of the sink which of course had to be followed by turning the sink rightside up when setting it into the counter-top opening, both of which operations were laborious and time-consuming and further objectionable in the requirement of substantial space to permit manipulation of the sink by turning it first in one direction and then in another.

Another drawback to the prior sink mounting means resided in their inability to adapt to sink flanges and counter tops of varying thicknesses as are encountered in actual use; or, if they were so adapted their construction was unduly complicated and difficult to apply and operate.

Stated broadly, it is a primary object of the invention to provide a sink mounting means which overcomes the above-noted objections and disadvantages of the prior means serving similar function, in simple yet thoroughly dependable and effective manner.

More particularly, an object of the invention is to provide an improved lug assembly for use in mounting a sink within a counter top or drainboard opening and which additionally secures the sink frameso that it seals to the upper surfaces of both the sink flange and counter top, which is so constructed and arranged that it may separately fasten to sink frame and counter top.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a lug assembly for use in securing a sink within its counter top and drainboard opening and which further secures the sink frame in place, which is constructed and arranged so that it is capable of attaching the sink frame to the sink flange without the requirement of turning the sink over, thereby eliminating the operations of inverting the sink and then turning it again to upright position necessary to set it into its counter top opening as is conventional with some forms of clamp and lug assemblies for use in mounting sinks in counter top and drainboard openings.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of a sink-to-counter top mounting means which can be used with a wide range of sink flange and counter-top thicknesses.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of an improved lug assembly for mounting a flanged sink within an opening provided therefor in a counter top,

nited States Patent Patented July 8, l

drainboard and the like which greatly simplifies and reduces the number of the various operations required in setting a sink at the proper level within said opening, and thereupon securing same in place in said opening.

Still another object of the invention is the provision of an improved lug assembly for clamping a sink frame to the flange of a sink preparatory to mounting the same in a counter top or drainboard opening and thereafter for securing the framed sink to the counter top along the edge of said opening, which is characterized by its ability to being secured with the finger tips only and without the use of tools.

Yet another object of the invention is the provision of a lug assembly for securing a sink frame to the flange of a sink and thereafter for mounting the sink and its frame in a counter top or drainboard opening, which incorporates a lug whose design is such that it does not distort or damage the sink frame or cause any weakening at its point or points of contact therewith.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a lug assembly for use as aforesaid which fastens to sink and to counter top more securely than any other log or clamp means now being used with which I am familiar.

The above and other objects and features of advantage of the improved lug assembly of the invention will appear from the following detailed description thereof, in which reference is had to the accompanying illustrative drawing, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a sink-counter top or drainboard assembly employing sink mounting means according to the invention;

FIG. 2 is a greatly enlarged, broken-away, part-sectional view illustrating the manner of securing a lug assembly constituting the aforesaid mounting means to the sink flange independently of its securement to the counter top or drainboard and also the manner in which the sink with sink frame attached may be simply lowered into place within the counter top or drainboard. opening preliminary to securement thereof to the counter top or drainboard edge;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but illustrating the action of a lug assembly as herein proposed in clamping the sink flange to the counter top with the sink frame secured in place; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the lower clamping arm of the lug assembly shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Referring to the drawing, reference numeral 10 (FIG. 1) designates a counter top, drainboard or other sink supporting surface provided with an appropriately contoured opening for the reception of a sink generally designated 12 of the type having a flat marginal flange 14, said sink being set into said opening and secured therealong by sink mounting means comprising a sink frame generally designated 16 and a plurality of lug assemblies generally designated 30 (FIGS. 2 and 3), to which the present invention is more particularly addressed. By reference to FIG. 3, which illustrates one of the lug assemblies in its fully applied position, it will be seen that the action of said plurality of lug assemblies is not only to securely mount the sink 12 to the counter top 10 but also to secure the sink frame in place so that it bridges the space between the marginal edges of sink flange and counter top and seals along its edges to the top surfaces of said parts, thereby to prevent seepage of water or moisture through or along said joint. It will be understood that the sink frame 16 also serves to provide a finished, attractive trim joint between the counter top which is usually surfaced with an ornamental plastic or like material, and the upper surface of the sink which is conventionally a finished or metallized porcelain surface.

Preferably, the aforesaid sink frame 16 is fabricated from sheet metal in a simple form-rolling and bending operation to a hollow beak-shaped section which is open along its outer side or edge, as disclosed and claimed in my prior application Serial No. 672,074 (now abandoned) and its continuation-in-part application Serial No. 797,364, filed March 5, 1959. To insure its effective sealing tothe upper surfaces of both the sink flange 14 and counter top 10, the top wall 18 of the sink frame is formed along its relatively outer flange-like edge portion 18a, which overlies the counter top, with a slight upward inward inclination, and along its relatively inner flange like edge portion 18b, which overlies a normally concealed lower or under wall 20 and jointly therewith overhangs the sink flange, with an inward-downward inclination. The lower wall 20 of the frame, which extends relatively outwardly from the frame inner edge a distance which is slightly less than half the width of said top wall 18, is upwardly inclined by a slight angle to the horizontal, as results in the inner edge of the frame being sharply pointed and also in the provision of a space between said lower wall Ztl and the upper surface of the sink flange for the reception of a sealing strip, should the provision of the latter be considered necessary or advisable to a more effective sealing. Also to be noted is that said lower wall 20 of the sink frame terminates as such, and thus the frame is devoid of the vertical leg conventional in the prior sink frames, as results in an appreciable saving in the amount of material required to fabricate the sink frame. The aforesaid shaping and arrangement of the top frame 16 insures a tight seal between the frame outer edge and the top surface of the counter top; a tight seal between the inner edge of the frame (as defined by the line of junction between the frame inner-edge portion 18b of its upper wall 18 and its lower wall 20) and the upper surface of the sink flange; and the disposition of the sink flange at a slightly lower level than that of the counter top, as achieves good drainage from the latter to the former.

Next considering in detail the construction of the lug assemblies 30, it will be understood, by reference to FIGS. 2 and 3, that each such assembly comprises an upper clamping member 32, a lower clamping member 42, and a screw means comprising a thumb screw 52 and a wing nut 54 for fastening the upper clamping member 32 (and thereby the sink frame 16) to the sink flange 14 and thereupon for securing the sink flange with sink frame attached thereto to the counter top 10. The upper clamping member 32, hereinafter for convenience called a lug, is roughly of C-shape, thus having an offset head portion 34 which is preferably beak-shaped and dimensioned so as to substantially fill the hollow interior of the sink frame 16, a vertical shank portion 36 adapted to extend downwardly through the space between the adjacent marginal edges of the sink flange and counter top, and a lower offset leg 38 which is adapted to extend under the sink flange 14 and is spaced from the under surface of lug head 34 a distance substantially greater than the thickness of said sink flange, thus to provide a side opening in which the sink flange may be received with substantial clearance. The shank of the aforesaid thumb screw 52 is threaded through said lower leg 38 of the lug whereby turning of thumb screw 52 in proper direction serves to clamp the lug to the sink flange 14.

The aforementioned lower clamping member 42 preferably takes the form of a relatively elongated bar or strap provided adjacent its relatively rearward end with a non-threaded, preferably elongated hole 44 which is oversize with respect to the thumb screw 52 and through which the thumb screw extends. Thus, the lower clamping member is freely slidable axially along the length of the thumb screw and also it may be freely turned thereon, for example to and from its inactive and active positions in which it is shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, respectively. As will be seen in FIG. 2, it is a feature of this invention that the length of the relatively rearward end of said lower clamping member 42 is such that when said member is turned to its inactive position it is disposed wholly within the outermost confines of the vertical shank portion 34 of the upper clamping member 32. Preferably, the longer clamp-jaw end portion or arm of said lower clamping member has length enabling same in the active position of said member to extend Well under the counter top 10, and it terminates in an upwardly inclined grip portion 46 whose edge 46a is adapted to bite into the under surface of the counter top when said arm is turned to its active position and tightened against the counter top. Such tightening is effected by the wing nut 54 which is threadedly mounted on the thumb screw 52 so as normally to retain said lower clamping member in place on said screw and to move axially therealong as it is rotated in one or the other direction. When said wing nut is turned in direction as to move upwardly along the thumb screw 52, it positively actuates the lower clamping member against the under surface of counter top 10, assuming of course that said clamping member is turned to its active position in which its longer arm extends under the counter top as in FIG. 3. On the other hand, and as best seen in FIG. 2, the length of the rearward or non-clamping end portion of said lower clamping member is less than the distance between the thumb screw 52 and the adjacent edge of the counter top opening, as permits said clamping member when turned to its inactive position to move freely past said edge.

To provide both a fixed abutment for the rearward end of the lower clamping member 42 and a fulcrum point at an appreciably lower level than that of the lug 32 about which its forward grip portion 46 may swing in a vertical plane as said member is tightened, the lower leg 38 of the upper clamping member or lug 32 is formed long, and its free end is downwardly inclined as at 40 and terminates in a downwardly facing knife edge 40a defining a fulcrum against which the rearward end of the lower clamping member 42 bears as it is tightened against the under surface of the counter top. Such an arrangement, in conjunction with the aforementioned oversizing and elongation of its hole 44 through which the thumb screw 52 extends, permits said lower clamping member to swing to an uppermost angular position corresponding to that of the broken line X-X, FIG. 2, thus to adapt the lug assembly to a counter top or drainboard having substantially lesser thickness than that shown. As there is nothing to interfere with the grip end 46 of the lower clamping member swinging to a much lower position than that shown, said clamping member has an extremely wide angle of effective operation. Thus, and also because the side opening of the upper clamping member or lug 32 has appreciably greater depth than the thickness of the sink flange 14 as shown, it will be appreciated that the herein lug assembly is adjustable to a large range of both sink flange and counter-top thicknesses.

To mount a sink Within a counter top or drainboard opening through the use of a sink frame corresponding to the sink frame 16 and lug assemblies according to the invention, the first operation is to place the frame over the sink flange 14, with the sink right side up. Thereupon a plurality of the lug assemblies are coupled to the sink frame and flange at appropriately spaced intervals along the edge of the flange simply by inserting the beakshaped head 34 of the upper clamping member or lug 32 into the hollow of the frame from the open side thereof, as of course results in the lower leg 38 of the lug extending beneath the sink flange, and by turning thumb screw 52 in direction as causes the lug head to draw the sink frame down on the sink flange and simultaneously therewith securely clamp said lug to the sink flange.

Next, the sink with frame and lug assemblies attached, and with the clamping members 42 of said lug assemblies turned to their inactive positions shown in FIG. 2, is

placed over and simply lowered into the counter top or drainboard opening, the weight of the sink being now taken by outer-edge flange portion 18a of the sink frame 16 which seals against the upper surface of the counter top. With the sink and frame properly set in the counter top opening as aforesaid, the operator now reaches in under the sink, turns the lower clamping members 42 of all lug assemblies to their active or clam-ping position shown in FIG. 3, and finally tightens the wing nuts 54 against said lower clamping members as positively actuates the latter into clamping engagement with the under surface of the counter top.

The advantages of sink frame mounting means based on the use of a lug assembly according to the invention are numerous. In the first place, the lug assemblies are capable of securing the sink frame to sink flange, and thereafter of securing the sink with sink frame attached, to the counter top in separate operations, and which require no tools. Since the lug assemblies can be fastened to the sink flange before the sink is lowered into its counter top or drainboard opening, there is no requirement for locating the lug assemblies blindly from beneath the counter top. Another feature of advantage is that the lug assemblies of the invention are capable of securing the sink frame to the sink flange without any requirement to turn the sink over, and then turning it rightside up again to place same into its counter top opening, as was necessary with some prior forms of sinkframe attaching means. Inasmuch as the sink with attached frame automatically levels itself when set into its counter top or drainboard opening, no separate leveling means for leveling the sink preliminary to its being fastened to the counter top it at all necessary. Another practical advantage of the sink mounting means as described is that the lug components of the lug assemblies re so designed that they do not distont or damage the sink frame or cause weakening thereof at their points of contact therewith, while at the same time they secure the sink frame to the counter top more securely than the prior lugs intended to serve similar function. Finally, a lug assembly of the invention, while characterized by extremely simple construction and mode of attachment, is capable of fastening the sink frame to both sink flange and counter top more securely than any of the prior sink frame fastening means now in use.

As many changes could be made in carrying out the above constructions without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawing shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

I claim:

1. Means for mounting a flanged sink within an opening in a counter top, drainboard and the like comprising, in combination, a unitary sink frame having a hollow body which opens towards the outer side of the frame and including laterally spaced inner and outer edge portions adapted to overlie the adjacent edges of the sink flange and counter top, respectively, and a plurality of individual lug assemblies for first securing the sink frame to the sink flange and thereupon the sink with sink frame attached to the counter top edge, each said lug assembly comprising a one-piece upper clamping member of general O-shape having a laterally extending head part inserted into the hollow of the sink frame from the open outer side thereof and bearing on the upper side of the said frame inner-edge portion, a vertical shank portion adapted to extend downwardly through the counter top opening inwardly of said frame outer-edge portion and a lower, laterally extending leg underlying said head part, said upper clamping member thus defining a side opening adapted when said member is assembled to the sink flange to receive said flange, screw means threaded through said lower leg and operable from beneath same and adapted to bear against the under side of a sink flange received in said side opening thereby to draw said upper clamping member and associated sink frame down on the sink flange, and a lower clamping member slidably mounted on said screw means for both axial movement thereaiong and for swinging movement from an inactive position in which it is disposed beneath said sink flange received in the side opening as aforesaid and wholly within the outermost confines of said vertical shank portion of the upper clamping member to an active position in which it is adapted to extend beneath the counter top and bear against the under side thereof, said screw means extending a substantial distance below said lower leg of the upper clamping member, and means on said screw means for normally retaining the lower clamping member in place on the screw means and for tightening said lower clamping member when in its aforesaid active position against the under side of the counter top.

2. Means for mounting a flanged sink within an opening in a counter top, drainboard and the like as set forth in claim 1, wherein the lower leg of said upper clamping member terminates in a downwardly facing knife edge serving as a fixed abutment and fulcrum for said lower clamping member when the latter is tightened against the under side of the counter top.

3. Means for mounting a flanged sink winthin an opening in a counter top, drainboard and the like as set forth in claim 1, wherein said lower clamping member comprises an elongate strap one end of which serves as a movable clamp jaw, and wherein the lower leg of said upper clamping member terminates in a downwardly facing knife edge serving as a fixed abutment and fulcrum for said movable jaw end of the lower clamping member.

4. Means for mounting a flanged sink within an opening in a counter top, drainboard and the like as set forth in claim 1, wherein said lower clamping member comprises an elongate strap one end of which serves as a movable clamp jaw, and the lower leg of said upper clamping member terminates in a downwardly facing knife edge serving as a fixed abutment and fulcrum for said movable jaw end, and wherein said screw means comprises a thumb screw threaded through said lower leg and adapted to bear against the under side of the sink flange and extending through an oversize non-threaded opening therefor in the lower clamping member, and said means for tightening the lower clamping member as aforesaid comprises a wing nut turnable on said screw and bearing on on the under side of the lower clamping member.

5. The combination of a counter top and the like having a sink opening, a flanged sink operatively disposed within said opening and means for mounting the sink in fixed relation therein comprising a unitary sink frame having hollow, generally beak-shaped cross-section which is open along its outer edge and including inner and outer edge portions which overlie the adjacent edges of the sink flange and counter top, respectively, and a plurality of individual lug assemblies operatively securing the sink to the counter top, each said lug assembly comprising an upper clamping member having an angularly disposed head which extends into the hollow of said frame and bears on said inner edge portion of the frame, a depending shank extending downwardly through the space between counter top and sink frame, and an angularly disposed lower leg extending beneath the sink flange, a strap-form lower clamping member including a clamp-jaw end portion which normally extends under and clampingly engages the under side of the counter top, and screw means interconnecting said clamping members and including a thumb screw threaded through the lower leg of said upper clamping member into engagement with the under side of the sink flange whereby to secure the upper clamping member and thereby the sink frame to said sink flange, said thumb screw extending through an unthreaded, oversize opening therefor in the lower clamping member whereby said lower clamping member, prior to its longer clamping end portion engaging the under side of the counter top, being free to move axially on and to turn about said 7 thumb screw, said screw means further including a wing nut turnable on said thumb screw and being positioned below said lower clamping member for clamping the latter against the under side of the counter top.

6. The combination set forth in claim 5, wherein the lower leg of the upper clamping member terminates at its free end in a downwardly facing knife-edge and the end of said strap-form lower clamping member opposite its aforesaid clamp-jaw end portion normally bears against and fulcrurns on said knife edge.

7. The combination set forth in claim 5, wherein the end of the lower clamping member opposite its clamp-jaw end portion has length less than the distance between the thumb screw and the edge of the counter-top opening, the

construction and arrangement being such that the sink 15 2,897,516

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,182,480 Lowry Dec. 5, 1939 2,514,740 Brown July 11, 1950 2,582,816 Bonnell ..'g Jan. 15, 1952 2,790,181 McCarthy L Apr. 30, 1957 2,843,855 Hammer July 22, 1958 2,877,468 Lawson Mar. 17, 1959 Ensch Aug. 4, 1959 

